Democrats shield candidate from Lindsey Graham with plexiglass wall in election debate
'I am taking this seriously. That’s why I put this plexiglass up. Because it’s not just about me’ says Jaime Harrison
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.At Saturday night’s South Carolina Senate race debate, there was more to social distancing than two podiums set thirteen feet apart.
Jaime Harrison, the Democratic Party challenger to Senator Lindsey Graham, was shielded by a large plexiglass screen, and prior to the debate, his campaign manager tweeted that the incumbent senator should be quarantining.
As chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, this week Mr Graham had prolonged exposure to Senator Mike Lee, who has since tested positive for Covid-19 — per CDC guidelines he should be in quarantine.
Fittingly, the first question of the night concerned the coronavirus pandemic, the number of newly infected public officials in the past day, and whether politics had hampered the response to the virus.
Trump’s doctor backtracks on president’s Covid-19 timeline as reports say he had supplemental oxygen on Friday
Third GOP senator announces he has Covid-19 this week
Coronavirus in the White House: who else in Trump’s inner circle has tested positive for Covid-19?
'Help us': Trump ally and GOP senator Lindsey Graham again begs for cash live on Fox News
Senator Graham answered first, defending the handling of the pandemic, saying that “the virus is a problem that came out of China not Trump Tower”.
He then pivoted his answer, vowing that through his position on the judiciary committee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett would be confirmed to the Supreme Court.
Mr Harrison said that he was not going to blame president Donald Trump or anyone for the inception of the disease, but he would put blame on whether it was taken seriously.
“Tonight I am taking this seriously. That’s why I put this plexiglass up. Because it’s not just about me, it’s about the people in my life that I have to take care of as well: my two boys, my wife, my grandmother,” he said.
Mr Harrison lost his aunt to coronavirus in the summer.
The debate comes on the second day of the president being hospitalised with the coronavirus at Walter Reed Medical Centre.
South Carolina has more than 151,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and has officially recorded 3,442 deaths from the virus.
There have been 7.4 million cases nationwide and more than 209,000 deaths.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments